Mocks And Smocks
by sunnykong1210
Summary: Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC
1. Prologue

**Mocks and Smocks **

**SUMMARY:** Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC

* * *

**Chapter 1: **Prologue

* * *

Smocks was Kongo Sora before she joined Sket Dance.

She was given the nickname Smocks because that was the first word Bossun blurted out when he first saw her. He didn't even know why he yelled "Smocks!"; he said it was an impulse thing.

When she said that she wanted to join Sket Dance, Bossun and Himeko were practically jumping with joy. Finally! They had a kohai joining the team! Switch, on the other hand, was furiously typing "Yahoo!" and "Hoorah!" while his expression remained stoic.

When they asked why she wanted to join, she shrugged and said, "Your club introduction was interesting."

Himeko and Bossun traded wary looks. Their club introduction was the epitome of major failure. It was also humiliating—very, very humiliating, in fact. What was so interesting about their skit?

The first assignment they did this year was to recover a girl's lost bracelet. Apparently, the girl lost it yesterday while she had gone to tennis practice. She said that she could not remember where she last placed it.

It took them four hours to find the bracelet, and the one who found it was the client. "Oops, it was in my sports bag this whole time," she giggled sheepishly.

After that, everyone went home. Smocks left, looking rather tired and exasperated.

The original Sket Dance members were worried that Smocks would quickly grow bored of the club and that she would want to resign being a member. But that didn't happen. The first-year stayed with them for two weeks, at least, and did all the mundane jobs alongside them, like helping the janitor unload boxes or finding more lost items.

The others were still worried though.

Bossun, fed up worrying, adopted an indifferent approach. "Whatever. We're here to help people, not to make sure that Smocks is entertained. If she doesn't want to be part of it, then she can leave," he said.

Two weeks eventually became a month. One month became two.

Smocks still stayed with the members of Sket Dance and hadn't made any indication that she wanted to resign out of the club, unless her usual small frown was supposed to be perpetual evidence.


	2. Names

**Mocks and Smocks **

**SUMMARY:** Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC

* * *

**Chapter 2: **Names

* * *

It had taken Sora for a while to get used to calling them by their nicknames rather than their respective titles.

"No, no, call me Bossun," Fujisaki-sempai insisted.

"And me, Himeko," chirped Onizuka-sempai.

"I am Switch," typed Usui-sempai.

Initially, it had been awkward addressing to them by such names, but after a week of getting to know them, Sora got used to seeing Fujisaki-sempai as Bossun and Onizuka-sempai as Himeko and Usui-sempai as Switch. They told her that she didn't need to call them sempai because she was part of the team now.

One thing stuck out like a sore thumb, however, and that was when they called her Smocks.

The nickname just sprang out of nowhere, and there was simply no connection between the name Smocks and herself. She wasn't even artistic in the slightest.

It began with Bossun blurting it out when she entered the clubroom. He was posed in an accusatory stance, had his finger pointed at her; he stood like that for a few seconds before crumbling away and receded into a ball of embarrassment.

"It was an impulse thing," he said. "I don't even know why I did what I did."

Nevertheless, the name stuck.

It wasn't that Sora minded the random nickname; she just had a hard time knowing that Smocks meant her. Such as whenever her senior club members would call out "Smocks!", it wouldn't register to her that they were calling at her.

She eventually got used to it in the end. For whatever reason, her classmates had adopted the habit of calling her Smocks as well (probably confused by the second-years often calling her that), so she was more or less forced to be reckoned by the name.


	3. Paint Mask Part 1

**Mocks and Smocks **

**SUMMARY:** Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC

* * *

**Chapter 3: **Paint Mask Part 1

* * *

During lunch, the senior members of Sket Dance barged inside room 1-D and dragged Smocks out, which was a common occurrence. It was also a common occurrence for Smocks to expect some sort of outrageous plan that Bossun had formulated in order to help someone in need. What wasn't a common occurrence, however, was being forced partake a stupid skit.

"Heck no," Smocks said flatly.

"C'mon, Smocks!" Himeko said. "Do it for the new guy!"

According to Switch (information from Bossun and Himeko can sometimes be unreliable), there was a new transfer student in their classroom. His name was Sugihara Teppei, and, for whatever reason, the three second-years had taken an interest in him. They wouldn't tell her anymore, just giving her a random costume and telling her to put it on.

It was a moustache and a pair of shades.

"Alright, Smocks, you're gonna be Switch's evil minion," Bossun briefly explained. "Here, you get to hold this." He then handed her a scepter.

"If I may ask," Smocks began before the trio could start whatever they were going to do, "why all this for the new student?"

"Why?" Bossun chuckled in a way that was supposed to seem cool but it totally wasn't. "We're Sket Dance, that's why!" With that said, he held up his arm across his chest, bearing his wristband proudly, something that everyone in Sket Dance wore. Even she was given one.

Smocks decided not to press the issue further (past experiences told her that she would end up in the same predicament anyway) as Himeko slid open the door. Inside, sitting in the back row, was a bespectacled boy with a mop of brown hair. He wasn't anything remarkable; he was just your average guy.

Himeko rushed inside and began crying out, "Oooh! Someooone! Help meee!" She crashed into the boy and sagged to the floor, groping at his clothes. "Like you, transfer student!"

His eyebrows shot up above his hairline as he spoke bewilderedly, "Wh-why me?"

Himeko ignored him as she continued on. "There's an evil man here! He was to take me and make a fortune out of me in Hong Kong, ya hear?"

"Eh?" Sugihara frantically looked around. "Eeehh?"

"That's your cue," Bossun whispered, pushing Smocks inside along with Switch.

Not knowing what to do, Smocks decided just to stand there. If these three sempais were expecting her to put up a performance, they're going to be sorely disappointed. She couldn't act even if her life depended on it.

Switch started out fluidly as he began walking weirdly. "Hahahaha!" he typed, a creepy synthesized voice coming from the laptop's speakers "There's nowhere else for you to run, little girl~!"

The expression of "what the mother?" transformed on Sugihara's face as he glanced at their direction. Himeko pointed at Switch and Smocks in feigned horror. "Eeek! It's the evil man and his evil minion!" she wailed. "You have to help me!"

"Um, e-excuse me…but what kind of joke is this?" Sugihara inquired hesitantly, backing away slightly.

Himeko twitched. "What do you mean by joke?" she demanded, her tone laced with a hint of annoyance. "Doesn't it look like that these scary people are scaring me? Huuuh?" It was more like Himeko being the scary one who's scaring poor Sugihara, from Smock's perspective. "Can't you tell that I'm scared to death?"

"I'm going to eat you up~~!" Switch typed.

"What the heck?" Himeko threw a disturbed glare over her shoulder. "Who told you to ad-lib?"

Smocks sighed. Himeko was being unnecessarily loud, as usual. And Switch was being unnecessarily weird, as usual. It was obvious that their act was wearing thin, even Sugihara was noticing that. Why were they doing this again?

"Hmm, this isn't working," Himeko suddenly realized.

"Should we start over?" Switch asked.

"This moustache is making my lips itchy," Smocks commented. "Can I take it off?"

"Shush, minion! Your lord commands you to bear with the itchiness!"

"AiiiYAAA!" echoed a high-pitched cry. Entering the classroom was Bossun, making a stupid pose along with a stupid face. "Yai! Yai! Yai! Ou! Ou! Ou! What the manner of villainy is this? Pursuing fair maidens through our fair streets?"

"Oho! And who might you be?" responded Switch, who responded to the stupid posing with his own.

"Allow me to introduce myself! No matter what trouble may appear on campus, I will be there to banish it! If he or she requires help, no matter who that person may be, I will be there! For I am…" Bossun grinned boldly as he jabbed a pair of thumbs into his chest. "Leader of the campus support club! Also known as Sket Dance! Fujisaki Yuusuke! AKA, Bossun!"

There was a moment of silence.

"Right! I'm here to save you, fair maiden!" Bossun declared.

Himeko clasped her hands together. "Ayaaa~! My herooo!"

Sugihara could only stare at the group with wariness.

"Can I go now?" Smocks asked, raising her hand.

"ARGH! Smocks! You just killed it!"

* * *

The members of Sket Dance invited Sugihara to their clubroom to have lunch there. Along the way, Himeko and Bossun fell into their routinary bickering while Sugihara watched the pair in disbelief, Switch was stoically walking ahead, and Smocks was rubbing her temple.

"Honestly, your lines were full of cliches!" Himeko criticized.

"Shaddup! It's your acting that stinks!" Bossun jeered back. "Your attempts at being a maiden in need of aid made me sick!"

"Oi, you were the one who told me to act like that! And I practiced for hours, just so you know!"

Sugihara, noticing that Smocks was perhaps the most normal of them all, asked her, "D-does this happen often…?"

"Occasionally," Smocks said in a dry tone. "It kinda depends on what kind of help people need from us. There are times when they're putting all their energy in yelling at our clients."

He looked at the smaller girl with a bit of curiosity. "Eh? What is it that you guys do?"

Instead of Smocks answering, Bossun cut in, having this ridiculously hopeful look on his face. "Eh? Could it be that you're interested in joining our club?" he wheezed, his lips drawn into his characteristic pout.

"Should you be making comments like that at this point?" Himeko complained.

"Whatever! Let me explain," Bossun began, gathering himself. "You see, we work to provide the students here a peaceful and happy school life: eliminating trouble in a flash, consult people about their worries, searching for lost items, even cleaning the school grounds. We offer our clients full satisfaction, making ourselves the super dependable campus support club."

"Hey, don't go telling him things like that," Himeko said. They were now entering the clubroom. Sugihara immediately looked around curiously, and sat down on the tatami mat when Smocks offered him a seat. "You know that everyone says that Sket Dance is just a group of handymen. Frankly, we kinda just do nothing all day since we're so unpopular."

"Eh? What the heck are you talking about, Himeko?"

"I'm talking about it's all because of our useless chief, ya moron!"

"OI! Who're you calling useless? I'm not useless, you are!" Bossun childishly threw back.

"A-ano, I'm assuming that everyone's a regular member, then?" Sugihara asked. Smocks silently applauded him for stopping another meaningless argument between those two. If Bossun and Himeko kept at it, there would be no point in dragging the new student all the way over here.

"Eh? Oh, I guess we hadn't properly introduced ourselves, didn't we?" Himeko said with a smile. "My name is—"

"This is our vice-chief, the amazon gorilla," Bossun cut in. He not-so discreetly whispered in Sugihara's ear, "She's a highly dangerous creature, so I wouldn't get close to her if I were you. She has acid running through her veins!"

Himeko, of course hearing this, flipped Bossun on his backside painfully with her hockey stick that she drew to her side after grabbing it from the hangers. "Would you stop blabbing without a brain? Look! You scared the new student!"

It was more like her instant kill scaring the new student.

Himeko turned towards Sugihara's direction, wearing a bashful smile. "I-I admit that there was a time that I was a bit rambunctious… But I've grown out of that now! I'm as harmless as a hamster, you see!" she insisted.

Sugihara blushed lightly, obviously charmed by how cute Himeko could prove herself to be, but it was all ruined when Bossun added, "Yeah, as harmless as a ferocious man-eating mutated hamster!"

"What was that!?"

"Onizuka Hime, nicknamed Himeko," Switch typed abruptly, gathering all attention onto him. "She was once known as Onihime and has developed a legend of her own as an undefeatable yankee."

"H-hey, he doesn't need to know that!" she protested feebly.

"Blood type B. Birthday: July 7. Favorite food: Pelollipop Candy, tako-wasabi flavor."

"How do you know that…"

"Height: 162 centimeters. Weight: Bust: Hip: Waists:—"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Himeko grabbed Switch by his collar and began shaking him violently. "Where on earth did you get that kind of info, you creep?! Seriously, do you do this on your free time or what?!"

"Her bodily fluids are highly acidic," Switch managed to type.

"LIKE HECK IT DOES!"

"Um, I've been wondering," Sugihara murmured, inching towards Smocks and the recovered Bossun. "Why is he carrying that laptop around?"

"You mean Switch? He's Usui Kazuyoshi, but everyone calls him Switch," Bossun said. "Dunno why, but he says that doesn't like using his mouth to talk, so he communicates with a speech sonthesis synthware."

"That's speech synthesis software," Switch corrected.

"He's reeeaal good at uncovering personal information, so I advise not getting too close to him either."

"My blood type is AB. Birthday: February 28. Favorite Visored: Kensei Muguruma—"

"AND!" Himeko cut in, noticeably getting increasingly irritated by Switch. "No one. CARES."

"Um, and what about your last member?" Sugihara asked.

"Oh, her? This is Smocks, our lil' kohai!" Himeko said, slinging an arm around Smock's neck. "Though she's cute and small, she thinks like an old man, saying things like 'how troublesome' and the like," she elaborated, carelessly gesticulating.

"She's the baby of the club," Bossun added, cheekily grinning while tousling Smock's hair.

"Blood type A. Birthday: December 31. Favorite food: artisan bread. Height: 155 centimeters. Weight:—"

"Okay, that's enough!" Smocks cried out exasperatedly. For some reason, Switch felt like throwing in useless information. How he managed to get a hold of all that (especially her weight) was beyond her. That laptop sure was something… "And, also, Bossun, quit messing up my hair—it's bad enough that it's almost impossible to brush in the mornings."

"You're hair is unbrushable, Smocks." Bossun turned back to Sugihara and grinned. "We just have four members now, that's about it. If you ever run into trouble, just come to us and we'll help you out!"

Sugihara glanced at each four faces, and then smiled gratefully. "Th-thanks."

* * *

Later that day, after school, the Sket Dance members were doing nothing much…as usual. Himeko was reading a magazine, Switch was typing on his laptop (playing another dating-sim, probably), and Smocks and Bossun were playing cards.

Today was boring, more boring than usual…

"Argh! I'm so bored!" Bossun wailed, throwing his handful of cards in the air. "I. Am. So. BORED!"

Smocks looked at him blankly.

"Jeez, why don't you just go home or something?" grumbled Himeko.

"Maaan, why doesn't something come up? Like a…blood-covered victim. He could slam open the doors and beg us, 'Please, help me!' And we'd have something exciting to do…" Bossun said, crossing his arms.

"How could you deal with something like that even if it did happen?" snorted Himeko.

A second later, the door slammed open, revealing a red-drenched Sugihara. "Please help me," he begged.

"ARRRRAAAAGH!" Himeko screamed.

"GAAAAH!" Bossun screamed as well. "BLOOD! HE'S COVERED IN BLOOD!"

"A-ah, no! Wait, it's not blood, it's paint!" Sugihara hastily assured.

"Oh, of course, it's just paint… PAINT? Man, how'd you get covered in that stuff?"

"Wait," Smocks said, standing up. "We don't _really_ know if it's paint. Bossun, you should do a taste-test to see if it's paint or blood."

"What?" Bossun cried, whipping his attention onto the girl. "Why me? Why do I have to taste it?!"

"You're the chief, of course."

"I-It's not blood, alright? Sugihara said so! It's freaking paint!"

"But we don't know that for sure," Switch typed in a solemn voice, standing up as well. "Sugihara could have secretly been a psychotic killer, and had subdued a student for his untimely death, causing it by shredding his throat and ripping out his intestines. That would surely elicit projectile bleeding from the arteries and—"

"Oi! Stop it! You're scaring me! Quit it!" Bossun and Himeko screamed.

"So, go on," Smocks prompted. "Go taste it."

"I don't wanna! You do it!"

"But I'm not the chief."

"I DON'T WANNA TASTE BLOOD! What am I?! A vampire?!"

"I-It's not blood!" Sugihara weakly insisted. "It's paint!"


	4. Paint Mask Part 2

**Mocks and Smocks **

**SUMMARY:** Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC

* * *

**Chapter 4: **Paint Mask Part 2

**NOTE:** This is all chronicled by the manga.

* * *

After being reassured that the red substance covered all over Sugihara was indeed paint (and having Smocks apologize for purposefully scaring them all like that), everyone calmed down as they listened to Sugihara explain what happened while Himeko handed him a towel.

"Well…I was watching the carps in the pond, and paint suddenly splashed on me from the second floor…"

"What the heck?" growled Himeko. "What a screwed-up thing to do!"

"Did you manage to see who did it?" inquired Bossun.

"Um, he ran off pretty quickly… Although, it looked like he was wearing a mask," Sugihara said.

Himeko scrunched up her face. "A mask? Seriously?"

"If this guy wore a mask, then he obviously wary enough to assume that someone would recognize him while catching him in action," Bossun assumed.

"Right. You guys stay here," Himeko said, getting up while grabbing her hockey stick. "I'll go beat the crap outta this guy…"

"Oi! Didn't you hear what I said?" Bossun cried, grabbing onto her shoulder to make her stop. "The guy was wearing a mask to hide his identity! We don't know who he is!"

"We don't know what's this guy's deal is," Smocks added.

"It is unlikely for a newly transferred student to have already earned someone's grudge," Switch typed. "Therefore, this would be an indiscriminate attack, in which many other students could be in the same predicament as Sugihara-san as well."

Unless it was anything like the twin debacle from last year(1), Sket Dance never had to face a problem that could test their skills. Already could Smocks see all three fidgeting in anticipation. Could trying to stop a strange masked guy be really that exciting? Well, Smocks suppose so since all they did so far was do the simple stuff.

"I-I thought so too," Sugihara agreed. "I found it strange at first, and then I figured that I should go to you guys since you're Sket Dance."

With this mentioned, the three other second-years perked up in excitement. "Now you're getting it!" Bossun exclaimed ardently. "Yeah, let Sket Dance find the one responsible for this and bring him to justice!"

"And I'll rip him to shreds!" Himeko added eagerly.

"Rip him to—? Oi, waitta minute…"

"U-um, I'm grateful for your help," Sugihara said. "Really! But I don't want to make a big fuss of things, especially when it's someone like me, who just arrived to this school…"

"Hey, don't worry about it—Sket Dance is always here for the sake of a troubled client!" Bossun said, grinning.

* * *

At some point of their investigations, Smocks found herself wearing an afro wig. Another point was when Bossun nearly got a bucket of paint dumped on him, and then the three of them crashing into a depressed guy who got out of an unattractive relationship. And what's more, Switch wasn't there with them the whole time. In fact, he was just hiding behind a tree, playing hide-and-seek.

Anyway, in the end, Switch found them a lead. They all returned to the clubroom and listened to what Switch had to inform them. After listening, Bossun then used his concentration ability by placing his goggles over his eyes.

That was when Smocks decided that this was a problem that took too much effort, so she stated, "This is too troublesome," and lied back against the tatami mat to take a nap, ignoring the sempais' "Hey, not right now!"

When Smocks woke up, it was by Himeko shaking her awake. "So," she yawned, rubbing her eye, "did you guys solve the problem?"

"We sure did!" Himeko chirped.

"Turns out that the transfer student was the masked pranker himself," Bossun said, looking rather proud of himself.

"But he did it only because Jogasaki, his bully back in elementary school, pressured him to get back at us for ratting him out to a teacher for graffiti," Switch added.

"I guess he did," Smocks said.

"Hmm? What do you mean, Smocks?" Himeko asked.

"Well, Bossun's covered in paint, so…"

"Ack! No, this is…" Bossun gestured wildly.

"Paint that Bossun poured on himself!" Himeko finished.

"Yeah! Paint that I—wait, that sounded extremely lame! You should make it sound cooler since I did a really cool thing back there, just so you know!"

"Ha? As if that could ever compare to me beating Jogasaki senselessly."

"So, what happens with Sugihara-sempai?" Smocks asked.

"What do you think? Obviously, after seeing how awesome we are, he's gonna wanna join our club!"

* * *

In the end, Sugihara joined the basketball team.

The members of Sket Dance were mildly depressed.

Smocks, once again, proved herself to be useless in another mission. Not that it really mattered to anyone.

* * *

(1): I'm referring to the one-shot.


	5. The Insomniac and the Nagger Part 1

**Mocks and Smocks **

**SUMMARY:** Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC

* * *

**Chapter 5: **The Insomniac and the Nagger Part 1

**NOTES:** When trying to imagine Smocks, picture a perpetually deadpan expression.

* * *

When Smocks was a little girl, she always loved to drink coffee. Initially, it was her little obsession in being more mature than her peers, so she would discreetly filch a cup of freshly brewed coffee that her bleary-eyed parents wouldn't even notice. The first taste was simply horrible—absolutely bitter and nasty, but since her teacher, her parents, and practically every adult she seen would drink the dark liquid, she would force herself to gulp down at least a cup of it each day.

Of course, coffee being chock full of caffeine would have negative results on a young child. That was how Smocks not only developed an acquired taste for black coffee but also insomnia.

Reason why: one, she's one of the shortest girls in her class (being 155 centimeters), and two, she always fell asleep during class. The teachers would usually pull her in after class to address the matter, and she would end up reassuring them that she just has insomnia and forgot to drink a bottle of energizer (and avoid telling them that their lessons were dead boring).

This kind of news didn't go unknown by a particular member of the student council, however. Strangely, one of her teachers thought it'd be best to tell the vice-president of such, which was beyond Smocks's capability of understanding _why_.

So, lo and behold, stood a boy with short hair and an armband signifying his position in the student council. "I'm Tsubaki Sasuke, vice-president of the student council," he announced with stern eyes. "Are you Kongo Sora?"

Seriously, why did her teacher go ahead and tell this guy of her situation? And it wasn't as if it was anyone else's business.

"Maaaybe," Smocks said in a deliberately indecisive tone.

"Eh? Well, are you or are you not?" he asked, sounding exasperated.

Smocks was amazed. Already was this guy getting annoyed—it was faster than the time when Himeko got frustrated with a tightly screwed jar of lollipops (and ended up shattering the jar with her hockey stick). Smocks decided that, in order to kill time (because as much as she loved her sempais, she wasn't going to blow off two to three hours of doing nothing), she was going to elongate this little meeting.

"Depends on who you're asking," she said, rocking on the heels of her feet.

The brows on his forehead were pulled downwards. "Just what are you blabbering about? Are you or are you not Kongo Sora?" Tsubaki demanded testily.

"Shouldn't I ask you that?"

"What the—why would I be Kongo Sora? I already stated that I'm Tsubaki Sasuke!"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure! I am Tsubaki Sasuke, vice-president of the student council of Kaimei High!"

Now he was getting _mad_, if the little foot stomp didn't emphasize it enough. Smocks figured that it'd be too troublesome dealing with someone like this (even if it was to stall time), so she nodded and said, "Nice to meet you, Tsubaki Sasuke-kun."

"No, no, no, no, no! That's disrespect towards your elders!" Tsubaki admonished. "You may not call me as such."

"What? What do you mean by elder?"

"I'm a second-year! Therefore, your sempai, you fool!"

"Oh." She genuinely did not know that. "I genuinely did not know that."

* * *

Seven minutes of what-is-not-really-a-tantrum-although-it-kind-of-is fit from Tsubaki Sasuke, vice-president of the student council.

* * *

"So," he said, coughing into his fist, "you're Kongo Sora, yes?"

"Yes."

"Then why did it take you so long to answer…?"

This time, Smocks's action was really indecisive as she avoided looking at him in the eye. "Uhh, reason is not important…"

His brow twitched as he looked at her in returning annoyance. Needless to say that the girl had made quite an unremarkable impression on him. Tsubaki sighed, deciding that it would be best to dismiss the issue. "Anyway, Kongo-san, I am here to approach the problem about your sleeping habits."

"In class?" Smocks inquired.

"In class—No, no! I mean about your insomnia." He shot her a disapproving look. "I understand that you may suffer from a sleeping disorder, but that does not mean you should napping during class; it would only worsen your ability to sleep at night."

"I don't sleep in class that much. I usually drink energizer to keep myself awake."

"Yes, and does the caffeine prolong to the rest of the day? From what I hear from your afternoon teachers, you end up being sprawled against your desk when the lessons start."

From the narrowing of the boy's eyes gave her a premonition that made her realize that she was going to be kept here after school for a while. Probably not even able to go to the clubroom and apologize to her sempais for her delay (they would have gone home by then). "Great," Smocks thought inwardly, "someone to nag at me when I'm not at home."

* * *

"Yo, Smocks," Bossun called out to her at the gates, lifting a hand. "We didn't see you in the club yesterday. What gives?"

"Sorry, you guys," Smocks said. "I was held back by a stickler."

"A teacher?" Himeko asked. Because how often does Smocks call people sticklers anyway?

"No, the vice-president of the student council."

Himeko and Bossun exchanged puzzled looks. Who was the vice-president? The second-years didn't know much about the student council as opposed to the student council last year. After all, they did have to turn in a club registration form to gain approval from the prior president.

"Well, I suppose I can forgive you for that," Bossun decided. He placed his hands on his hips and leaned forward, as if to parody intimidation. "But the next time I won't be as forgiving, understood?"

"Loud and clear," Smocks replied dryly.

"Good. Anyway, what did this stickler vice-prez want from you?"

"He was lecturing me about how to recover from my insomnia. Things like that." Smocks yawned as she pulled an arm over her shoulder. "Well, I'm gonna go on ahead. See you guys later."

"Okay, bye."

Once again, Himeko and Bossun looked at one another, but this time a bit incredulously. They were aware of Smocks's sleeping disorder, which explained why the girl could usually fall asleep given any situation (once, Smocks fell asleep in the clubroom when a panty thief ran inside to hide in there, and she wasn't bothered when Himeko entered and beat the living crap outta him).

However, if this vice-president planned on helping her, would this mean that Smocks wouldn't sleep during the club hours? It was a weird thought. Already had the members of Sket Dance become accustomed to the girl's lethargy, and it was what she usually did when they didn't have any clients. So what was she going to do then?

"I don't think I can see Smocks not sleeping," Himeko confessed.

"Me neither," agreed Bossun. "Well, let's just see how things turn out."

* * *

On the way to class, Smocks encountered Tsubaki. Given their prior meeting the other day, the girl couldn't help but feel a little wary around him. He portrayed himself rather uptight and serious, basically someone Smocks wouldn't find associating willingly. Needless to say, she didn't really have a fond opinion of him.

"Kongo-san," he addressed her, nodding in greeting.

"Morning," she murmured. As she continued to walk, he said, "Don't forget to meet me the same place after school."

"Okay," she said expressionlessly, still walking and not bothering to acknowledge him.

This display, apparently, disgruntled him. "O-oi, don't walk away like that! That's disrespect."

Smocks stifled a sigh.


	6. The Sleepy Minion

**Chapter 6: **The Sleepy Minion

* * *

If Bossun was chief, Himeko vice-chief, and Switch secretary, then what was Smocks?

When Himeko addressed this, the boys exchanged looks and fell into serious thinking poses.

"Minion," Bossun and Switch said simultaneously, thus earning stinging whacks from Himeko.

"Ow! What the heck, Himeko!" cried Bossun, who was clutching his head.

"The pain! It's unbearable," Switch typed.

"C'mon, you two! Be serious about this," Himeko chided, sighing. "I feel kinda bad for leaving Smocks out like this. I mean, we all got ourselves a role but her!"

Rubbing the sore spot gone, Bossun pursed his lips in thought. "Well, it's not like we can make her treasurer, because we don't really have funds or anything of the sort."

"Public relations," Switch typed.

"Uh, Smocks doesn't really strike me as a sociable person…"

"Public executive," Switch tried again.

"Eh? But I thought that beating up people was my job," Himeko interjected confusedly.

"No, you moron! Not an executor, an executive," Bossun clarified. "Someone who would do things like make posters to attract clients."

Himeko frowned. "Smocks isn't artistic," she stated flatly. "If you don't remember Yabasawa-san's previous request."

"Yeah… You don't have to tell me twice." Bossun involuntarily twitched at the memory of when they had to paint the wall of their client's parents' store. Smocks somehow managed to mess things up, which was out of his comprehension of _how_. "I guess her being a public executive's out."

"What does she even do normally?" Himeko felt compelled to ask.

"Sleep, read, sleep, mock at us silently, sleep." Bossun paused. "Sleep," he added.

"No! I mean, what does she go when we get requests?"

"Sleep," was the immediate reply coming from both Bossun and Switch.

Himeko made a sound of irritation. "Gah! Forget it!" she grumbled, throwing her arms in the air. "We'll just ask Smocks once she gets here."

By the time she did, she made quite an entrance. "I'm here," exhaled Smocks loudly. She was tiredly dragging her schoolbag behind her while she used her foot to push open the door.

"Oi, Smocks, you're late!" Bossun said.

"Sorry. The high-strung vice-president decided to keep me in a few minutes longer," Smocks groused, shuffling her feet to her usual spot. She dropped her bag and nearly collapsed onto the tatami mat next to Bossun.

"Boy, you look exhausted." Bossun frowned in concern for his underclassman. "That vice-prez isn't pushing you too hard or anything, is he?"

"Nah, just listening to him tends to be a bother," the girl sighed. She reached for one of the oversized pillows that were shoved to the wall and hugged it against her chest. "It's more tiresome than running a lap."

"Jeez, this girl…"

"Anyway, Smocks," Himeko piped, "we happened to be talking about you."

Smocks lifted her chin, eyebrow arched. "Is that so?"

"Yeah! We were just talking about our roles within the club, and we wondered what position you would want."

"What do you mean?"

"You know how Bossun's the chief, I'm the vice, and Switch's the secretary, but you're the one without a title."

"Oh, I see what you mean." Smocks frowned and idly scratched her cheek. "I suppose this _is_ an issue, yeah?"

"Oh, you bet."

The first-year flopped on her back and said, "In that case, I'll be whatever. I don't care."

Not a word was said as Smocks easily drifted off to dreamland. While the girl's soft snores filled the silence in the room, Himeko snapped her frantic gaze upon Bossun and Switch, who both returned equally discomforted looks.

And, so, it was decided that Smocks would be the sleepy (useless) minion of Sket Dance.


	7. Misfit Friendships

**Mocks and Smocks **

**SUMMARY:** Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC

* * *

**Chapter 7: **Misfit Friendships

* * *

Smocks was, to put it frankly, socially detached. Due to her own reasons, she naturally kept to herself and found trying to force her way into making friends as "troublesome". It wasn't that she had anything against friendships; she just wasn't very good handling them. Perhaps that was the reason why she didn't have any friends other than her sempais in Sket Dance.

Her classmates didn't seem interested in her withdrawn and quiet personality, so they didn't bother talking to her. And, apparently, she was considered "gloomy," though Smocks honestly didn't know what made her appear so downcast.

As the days passed by, Smocks began to look forward to her breaks where she could spend time with her newly-made friends. They were incredibly eccentric, but that's what she came to love about them.

Himeko and Bossun would ask her if she would prefer to spend time with her first-year friends instead, both naively guilty that they might be pulling her away from her classmates. Sometimes, Smocks wanted to laugh at their genuine concern—it was something she never thought she'd encounter before. She could even feel worry from Switch, who would often cover his emotions with his characteristically blank expression.

"No, it's alright," Smocks would say with a reassuring smile. The second-years would exchange looks before shrugging and continuing on with whatever they would be doing.

Then, one day, class 1-D had to do a partner project. As her classmates got up to go with their friends to partner up, Smocks sighed in resignation. She detested anything that had to do with working with her classmates—it would fall to the same pattern: awkward silences, wishy-washy decisions, and having the misfortune of being paired up with someone who doesn't even want to do any work.

"I'll end up with someone who didn't find someone else to pair up with," Smocks thought to herself. But just when she was expecting to wait a few more minutes, a work packet landed on top of her desk, surprising her.

"Oi, Smocks. You and me," said a brusque voice. Takemitsu Shinpei towered over her desk, wearing his usual scowl and furrow of the brows.

Smocks was not one to judge (especially after getting to know Sket Dance), but, from what she heard, Takemitsu's gruff exterior certainly matched with his reputation in being a delinquent. Already was she making assumptions about how well would she be able to finish the project while working with someone like him. And it wasn't looking all too well.

However, she quickly learned that was not the case. Takemitsu pulled a chair and straddled it, seating himself before her. He then took the packet and pulled out the staple, then portioning the papers evenly between the two. "I'll do one half and you'll do the other," he said.

She nodded.

They began to work independently and quietly, unlike most groups where they filled the room with chatter and peals of laughter. Aside from asking her the occasional questions, Takemitsu didn't talk to her at all until he popped out one question after another. Their first actual conversations started from there.

"Oi, help me with this problem."

"…"

"Thanks."

"Hm."

Silence.

"You don't talk much, do ya?"

"Does it really matter?" she returned nonchalantly.

"Che. Nothing. Just wondering," he grumbled.

"Nothing much to say," she answered.

"Mm."

Silence.

"What about those sempais who always drag you out during lunch?"

"Huh?"

"What do they call themselves? Cat Dance?"

"Sket Dance."

"Yeah, whatever. What about them?"

"What about them?"

"You seem like you talk to them a lot."

"I…guess I do."

"How come you don't here?"

"Nothing much to say here, I suppose."

"Hn."

Silence.

"Oi, what's the answer to this problem?"

"Didn't I already show you how to do it?"

"I forgot."

"…"

"Don't give me that look! Just help me do it!"

If one were to think that the developing twitch on Smocks's lips was a sign that she was getting increasingly annoyed with Takemitsu, he would be sorely wrong. As Takemitsu continued to broach a topic, the flow of a conversation became fluid. Smocks ended up smiling bit by bit. She didn't know why, but she was beginning to find talking with the delinquent to be rather amusing. He reminded her of Bossun, in a way.

Of course, the two were still strangers, so they didn't hit off right away. The awkward silences were still there, and responses to continue a conversation would sometimes die out. Yet, it was undeniable that this was a start of something new.

"Hey, you like samurais?"

The first image that flashed in her mind was a dancing samurai ad that popped up on her laptop screen a few days ago. "Not really. They're pretty lame," she felt compelled to say.

Unexpectedly, Takemitsu reeled his head back in aghast. "O-oi! What's wrong with you? And samurais are _not_ lame!" he protested.

And then he would ask, "…What about _Reality Maji_?"

"Holy cow, you would watch that crap?"

"I-it's not crap!"

"It's produced by the same studio that released episodes of _Futari wa Nervous_. It's worth crap."

"Che."

And then it would result with Smocks laughing under her breath and Takemitsu grumbling defensively.

There were days were Bossun, Himeko, and Switch would see less and less of Smocks before they would gather for their club meetings. More often would the first-years of class 1-D would see Smocks and Takemitsu together, sometimes jokingly bantering with one another, and other times actually quarrelling about trivial things (like whether some animes were worth crap or not).

"You haven't even seen it."

"_Kimi Ni Todoke_? It's a girly anime! Like heck I'll watch it!"

"Maybe you'll learn a thing or two in getting yourself a girlfriend, noting the number of times your brother failed to do so."

"Argh! Don't bring my brother into this!"

"Well, it's not like you would get a girlfriend. Your creepy samurai fascination does a fine job as a girl repellant."

"Shut up! Shut up!"

If their classmates had to sum it up, it was a strange friendship between two misfits, but it was a good one.

* * *

**NOTES:** Smocks heard of Shinzo from Shinpei—he once unintentionally mentioned about his big brother's failure in getting himself a girl. Smocks now knows why.


	8. Ape Escape

**Mocks and Smocks **

**SUMMARY:** Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC

* * *

**Chapter 8: **Ape Escape

* * *

"So basically," said Yabasawa, "my parents had gone away on a trip, and I thought it would be awful to leave him on his own, so I secretly brought him to school with me. But then I realized that I couldn't watch him while I'm busy doing club activities, which is awful, so I decided to bring him here."

Smocks looked down dispassionately at the creature sitting on the table.

"I'm sure the others would be eager to take care of Yeti," she then decided to say.

"Oh, how awful!" enthused the older girl. Yabasawa reached down and grabbed her schoolbag, saying, "Well, I'll leave him in your care. I'll be back soon!"

"Yeah, take care, sempai."

Smocks watched today's client exit out the door before turning her attention back at the small primate. Yeti returned her gaze, eyes inquisitive. After staring for fifteen seconds, a shudder was elicited from the youngest Sket Dance member.

"Guh. I hate monkeys."

* * *

"We have returned from the convenience store!" exclaimed Bossun, charging in like a valiant knight he could never possibly hope to imitate while wielding his sword of a candy bar. "And we have brought snacks!"

The second-years didn't get a "Welcome back" or anything or the sort. Instead, they got themselves a show: jumping around the clubroom was a small white ape wearing a miniature backpack, screeching and making a mess. Smocks was desperately trying to catch the animal by chucking pillows at it. When the ape leapt in front of Bossun's face, the next thing the boy knew was being suffocated by a cushion.

"Whoops. Sorry," Smocks said, sounding not at all apologetic.

"What in the world?" shrieked Himeko, ogling at the tipped chairs, scattered papers and pillows, and the couch that was somehow lying on its back (did Smocks drive the furniture with an _elephant_?) "What the heck is going on here?"

"We leave you alone for fifteen minutes and you've gone making a mess. Shame on you," Switch typed in a patronizing motherly voice.

Bossun, who had recovered from having his face smacked, looked down at the supposed culprit and said, "Mind telling us what's going on, Smocks?"

"Yabasawa-sempai," was her only explanation.

"And I'm guessing that the monkey belongs to her…?"

"Well, it's not like anyone else would bring in one." And then she added, "Unless, you consider—"

"Dang it!" he cried, throwing his arms in the air. "That girl always brings us the weirdest requests ever!"

"And her monkey's making an even bigger mess!" Himeko pointed at the ape that was still jumping around.

"A few minutes after Yabasawa-sempai left, it started getting restless and began scampering around inside the room," Smocks elaborated, shrugging helplessly. "And since I didn't want to grab the thing, I decided on an alternative."

"By chucking pillows at it?" said an incredulous Bossun.

"That or it was Himeko's hockey stick, but I was afraid of hurting it."

"And why, pray tell, did you not want to grab it?"

The girl grimaced. "I don't like monkeys."

Bossun fixed her a look.

"Technically, it isn't a monkey," Switch typed unnecessarily. "Monkeys have tails, and this creature does not have one, so therefore it is not a monkey."

Bossun and Smocks fixed him a look.

"Do you really think now's the time to get all informative on us, Switch? I mean, it's not like we're taking a visit to the zoo or something!" Bossun exclaimed.

"Oi! Can't someone notice that the freaking monkey is making a freaking mess?" Himeko exclaimed indignantly, stamping her foot against the floor.

"Then why don't you capture the thing if you're so concerned about the mess it's making?" Bossun snapped.

"Fine! I will!" she snapped back. Himeko made a grab for her hockey stick, which Bossun later quickly intervened.

"No, no, no! You're gonna hurt it, you idiot! What would Yabasawa-san say when she comes back to pick up her monkey all bloody and dead?"

"She'd be _pretty_ upset," Switch piped up, once again, unnecessarily. He slightly flinched when two pairs of glowering eyes were directed at him.

"Switch, shut up!" Bossun demanded (but it sounded more like a whine).

"I can't help it! It's my charming attribute, after all."

"What? Throwing in annoying comments?"

"Now, now, there's no need to be jealous."

"What's there for me to be jealous about!?"

When Bossun noticed that Himeko was about to dive in and attack the ape, he went back trying to stop her. Switch commented something stupid again, which predictably riled up the chief, and this allowed Himeko to try to pursue after Yeti…again. Smocks got a hunch that this wasn't going to end anytime soon, so she grabbed a few of the bought snacks and walked out of the clubroom.

When the screaming and shouting had finally quieted, Smocks got up from the floor and went back inside, only to find that the three second-years were peering outside an open window in eerie silence. It's been totally silent for two minutes.

They never been quiet for this long, Smocks observed.

Suddenly, Himeko exploded. "AAH! Yabasawa-san's monkey's gone!" she cried hysterically.

"Technically, it isn't a monkey—"

"Shut up, Switch!" Himeko and Bossun snapped.

"What do you mean the monkey's gone?" Smocks asked, frowning.

"The monkey jumped out of the window! Didn't you see it?" Bossun said, apparently never noticing that the girl had actually left to escape the noise.

Smocks raised an eyebrow at the open window. Perhaps Himeko got past Bossun and managed to somehow push the window up. Didn't really sound plausible, but Himeko _was_ the strongest out of all four of them, maybe the strongest in the whole school.

"Where did you see Yeti run off to?" Smocks asked.

"Yeti?" Bossun looked confused.

"The name of the monkey."

"Oh, uh, first it climbed down the wall and then disappeared somewhere over there," he explained, pointing to the direction of where the school field was.

"Argh! We'll never catch it! The lil' monster's gonna be all over the place!" complained Himeko. "It'll be like finding a needle in a haystack!"

"Then we better get started." Bossun turned to Switch and ordered briskly, "Make a map of the school and divide it amongst us, that way the search would go by much faster."

"That means you gotta at least put some effort in finding Yeti, Smocks," Himeko commented, giving her a pointed look.

Smocks frowned and crossed her arms. "Hey! It's not like I ditch my part of job on a regular basis," she protested.

"Yes you do," was the simultaneous reply coming from all three second-years.

"Whatever," the youngest member grumbled.

"Anyway, let's get moving," Bossun said. "The least we want is Yabasawa-san to catch her pet monkey wandering around without us watching it like how we're supposed to."

"Wait, searching by random would still be a waste of time," Switch interjected. And then he typed with a cheery sing-song synthesized voice coming from the speakers, "It's time for…'That's our Switch!' corner!"

"Huh? What're you talking about, man?"

"If you're joking like before, I'll kill you," growled Himeko.

"In case of the one-in-a-million chance that the ape would escape, I planted a transmitter on it in advance just to be safe," the bespectacled boy elaborated, holding up another transmitter for example. It was as small as his fingernail with a metal antenna jutting from the spherical device. It looked like a berry, from Smocks's point of view.

"What! When did you do that?" Himeko said, stunned.

"When you and Bossun were having your third wrangle," Switch typed in his tee-hee voice.

Before the bleached-haired girl would do something violent (which was a usual event to see), Smocks interrupted by inquiring, "So, what does the transmitter do?"

"With the transmitter, we'd be able to find the exact location of the ape using the map that I pulled up on my laptop."

"That's our Switch!" exclaimed Bossun and Himeko, who were pointing at Switch with wide eyes and awed expressions.

Switch nodded in all seriousness, and then turned his attention to Smocks with an expectant look on his face.

"I'm not going to do it," Smocks deadpanned.

* * *

Before Sket Dance could go and chase after Yeti, they nearly ran into Chuu-san, who was standing in front of the door. His eyebrows shot up as he took a small step back. "Whoa there, kids, what's the rush?" he asked.

"Gotta catch ourselves a monkey," Bossun hurriedly explained, squeezing past their supervisor as Himeko and Switch followed. "No time!"

"Wait, I…" the teacher trailed off, and then sighed. "Youngsters these days." He then took notice of Smocks, who stayed behind. "Hm? You're here?"

"I just figured that you had something to say," she said, shrugging (she didn't want to run, in reality).

"Well, isn't that polite of you. Yeah, I was going to say that some mini ape got into my office and stuffed an explosive I made inside his backpack. I think it might be the monkey that Bossun was referring to."

Smocks did reply right away, and then finally said, "An explosive?"

"Yeah." Chuu-san scratched his chin. "Probably gonna explode anytime soon. There's a timer on it, I think."

"…"

"…"

"…WHAT."

* * *

"Good grief, Smocks! Where were you?" cried out Bossun. At the moment, both he and Himeko were panting heavily in the middle of a baseball field with softball equipment scattered all over the place. Smocks could picture the fiasco that was going on prior to her entrance.

"Oh, having a nice chat with our pyromaniac supervisor," Smocks said with a happy smile, "learning how Yeti snatched a bomb from his office that would detonate at any given moment, which could possibly leave us with an extremely bloody mess to explain to Yabasawa-sempai."

The newly acquired information slowly registered into their minds before they burst out into bewildered shrieks of "WHAAAT?"

"We gotta catch that thing fast!" Bossun gasped.

"UGH! Why would Chuu-san go ahead and make more stupid things?" Himeko groused loudly.

"So, what are we going to do?" Smocks asked Bossun.

"Me? Why're you asking me?"

"You're the guy who always comes up with the plans." And then she added, "Duh."

"Yeah, Bossun, what're we gonna do?" Himeko urged.

"Yeah, what're we gonna do?" Smocks parroted for the heck of it.

"Well?"

"Well?"

Bossun's face went into an interesting shade of red as his face twisted into a frustrated scowl. "ARGH! Shut up! Both of you! And you, Smocks! Stop picking on your sempai, alright!? I—I can't handle the pressure!" With that said, Bossun chomped on his lower lip to stifle a bursting wail.

Smocks suddenly felt guilty. Kind of.

"Sorry, sorry," the first-year gave in, hands up in a placating manner. "But I really do mean it when I said that you're the one who knows what the next step is."

"Yeah, that's right, Bossun!" cheered Himeko, companionably smacking him on the back. "You tell us what to do, and we follow."

Bossun, the big baby, sniffled and asked in a watery voice, "Really?"

"You bet!"

Smocks resisted the temptation of face-palming. Maybe she shouldn't have chosen to tease the older boy. They were now just wasting time here and a monkey's timely death was approaching one second after another.

Bossun, pumped up with confidence from Himeko's shower of compliments, adopted a serious face and exclaimed, "All right! I think I know what to do. Initiating: Operation Bait!"

"Bait? Does that mean we're gonna buy bananas or something?" Himeko asked.

"Nah, that won't be necessary. Switch noticed something interesting on his laptop when Yeti was with the softball team."

* * *

And by interesting, he meant perverse.

Behind the school building was Himeko. Her shirt was unbuttoned, revealing the fleshy knoll of her breasts all the way down to her belly. Her skirt was ridden up high so that the edge was brushing against the top of her thighs. She was blushing in embarrassment, but more so in irritation.

Hidden behind her supposedly sexy pose was a net.

"Are you sure this is going to work, Bossun?" Smocks asked in a skeptical tone. "Because a pervy monkey is just…"

"It's gonna work. Just trust me," he said. Looking through his binoculars, Bossun then murmured, "Here he comes."

As noted, Yeti did show up. Just after he rounded a corner, he skidded in his tracks when his eyes landed on Himeko, and soon enough did the ape create a chirping sound of…excitement. He began to run towards Himeko, much to Smocks's disbelief, but then he suddenly froze.

"What's going on?" she said.

"He's probably caught dead in Himeko's intimidating aura," Bossun snorted. "Ah well, I didn't think we'd get him that easily." He handed the binoculars to Smocks. "Hey, Switch, you sure the rubber's secure?"

"There are no errors in my calculations," Switch replied.

"Location?"

"Exactly as predicted."

"Alrighty then." Bossun pulled down his goggles over his eyes. He hopped over to the ledge of the roof and loosely imitated a diver's pose before taking a jump.

"Ready for the countdown: Five…four…three…two…one…"

Bossun dove off of the building, cutting through the air fast since he was positioned head-first and his arms tight against his sides. Just before he came within an inch close to the ground, he wrapped his arms around Yeti, yelling, "Gotcha!" before being pulled back up by the elastic cord that was tied to his ankles.

"All right!" Himeko exclaimed. "Way to go, Bossun!"

The pull of the cord didn't go as planned, or so Smocks had suspected. Bossun didn't shoot right back up, but instead was thrown into the air somewhat sideways before having his face scraped harshly against the wall of the building. From shock, Bossun released his hold of Yeti, causing the small ape to soar upwards. Luckily, Switch reached out his arms in time to catch him.

"Good work," Chuu-san said. "Now, let's get Bossun up here."

"Can't we keep him hanging?" Smocks said. "I have a feeling that his face is going to look uglier than usual."

Smocks was right, of course, but they ignored her anyway. Bossun was probably feigning unconsciousness since he wasn't budging when Switch and Chuu-san dragged the boy onto the roof. His face was scratched up and red and his nose was bleeding.

Himeko eventually ran up the stairs and barged through the door. "Did ya get Bossun? He looked pretty beaten when he sprang up!" When she noticed the chief's motionless self, she cried. "Argh! It looks like a murder mystery!"

While Himeko and Switch were commenting about Bossun's lesser state, Smocks watched Chuu-san unzip Yeti's backpack and produce a softball. The two remained silent.

"I guess the real bomb got switched at the field," Smocks observed.

The man gave the girl a dry look. "Ya think?"

Somewhere on campus, an explosion was heard.


	9. The Insomniac and the Nagger Part 2

**Mocks and Smocks **

**SUMMARY:** Smocks wasn't a big contribution to the club, but that didn't mean that she wasn't a full-fledged member. Bossun suspected she was here just to laugh at them. OC

* * *

**Chapter 9: **The Insomniac and the Nagger Part 2

* * *

Smocks found it to be a bit strange. Wouldn't an occasion like insomnia be something that teachers would contact parents or doctors and not _students_? Having Tsubaki helping her to overcome or adjust (frankly, she didn't know herself) the bouts of slumber during class was peculiar. It wasn't like the boy was trained to be an expert on this sort of thing…or was he? Maybe it came with the title of being vice-president of the student council, who knows. What she did know was that Tsubaki must know what he was doing if a teacher entrusted him that much.

It was too bad that the guy was flat-out _irritating_.

For some reason, he _must_ have processed the request of "Please help Kongo-san with her insomnia" to "Please treat Kongo-san as though she is your own child." Or something like that. It really did feel like having another mother around. Or maybe a stingy aunt. Whatever.

Tsubaki never hesitated on nitpicking her, saying things like "You should consume more protein. It's no wonder why you're always so tired," "Do not slouch! You will end up with a bad spinal cord as you get older," "Take the time to brush your hair. Wait, do you even brush your hair?", or "Perhaps if you did what I told you then this wouldn't have happened, now would it?"

It has been at least three weeks (two long, _long_ weeks) of having Tsubaki nag her. Relentlessly. Never would she have thought to encounter a boy like Tsubaki—so organized, so precise, so…_him_. It was interesting, yet, at the same time, a much reiterated point, troublesome. More troublesome than interesting, that's for sure.

It was then that she felt compelled to ask her teacher _why_.

"I figured that, of all people to help you, Tsubaki-kun would be the best choice, him not only having insomnia himself but also being around your age."

Smocks blinked. "He had insomnia?"

He nodded. "Oh yes. I had Tsubaki-kun in my class before when he was a first-year. Just like you, he had a habit of falling asleep during lessons."

Well, wasn't that interesting.

"I guess he began sleeping regularly sometime later…?" Smocks said.

"Yes. I believe it was after he was nominated into the student council."

The reason behind it all was so blatant that the girl couldn't understand why the teacher couldn't register it. Perhaps he was an idiot.


End file.
